The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. -- and the civil rights struggle

Associated Press

Among major events in civil rights history was the Little Rock Crisis. Nine African American students were kept out of racially segregated Central High School in Little Rock by Arkansas National Guard troops. Mobs threatened to lynch the children. It wasn't until President Eisenhower intervened and federal troops were called in that the so-called Little Rock Nine were able to attend the school.

Among major events in civil rights history was the Little Rock Crisis. Nine African American students were kept out of racially segregated Central High School in Little Rock by Arkansas National Guard troops. Mobs threatened to lynch the children. It wasn't until President Eisenhower intervened and federal troops were called in that the so-called Little Rock Nine were able to attend the school. (Associated Press)

Birmingham, Ala., became a focal point of the civil rights movement in the spring of 1963, when the city used fire hoses and police dogs against nonviolent activists. Photos such as this one are credited by some with helping to galvanize support for reform.

Birmingham, Ala., became a focal point of the civil rights movement in the spring of 1963, when the city used fire hoses and police dogs against nonviolent activists. Photos such as this one are credited by some with helping to galvanize support for reform. (Bill Hudson / Associated Press)